Preview

Why Did Jeffersonian Americans Considered Broad Constructionists

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
570 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Why Did Jeffersonian Americans Considered Broad Constructionists
Jeffersonian Republicans were often portrayed as strict constructionalists and the Federalists were considered broad constructionalists, but this characterization was untrue in many ways. Between 1801 and 1817 their primary beliefs on economics, military, and the judicial branch seemed to change completely.
When Thomas Jefferson became president, he began to change his view on economics drastically. Jefferson and Madison, both republicans, talked about limited government. However when they served as President, both men excersized powers not granted in the constitution. Jefferson originially believed that the country would never exist in harmony as long as the Federalists supported ideas not stated in the Constitution. (A) Despite this, Jefferson purchased large amounts of western land from France in the Lousiana Purchase without senates approval. The Federalists believed this
…show more content…
This was considered broad constructionalism because normally Jeffersonians would try to limit military spending and expansion of their military, yet the decision to go to war was not changed. Most did not agree with the war, but it was most unpopular in New England where citizens were extremely dependent on trade.The Constitution stated that 2/3 must support the war before it can be declared but Jefferson believed he had the final decision (E). Federalists complained that the Consitution did not state anything about enforcing a draft, and that it would be similar to creating a dictator (D). Another way in which Federalists began to exhibit strict behaviors was by setting up the Hartford Convention. This showed that they were trying to secede from the war against Britain, but began the downfall of the Federalist party due to their disloyalty. All of these things show how each party gradually switched their views on the Constitutions

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Federalist Dbq

    • 791 Words
    • 4 Pages

    With respect to the federal Constitution, the Jeffersonian Republicans are usually characterized as strict constructionists who were opposed to the broad constructionism of the Federalists. However, during the presidencies of Jefferson and Madison this characterization of the two parties was not so accurate. In the years of 1801 to 1817, both Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, while supporting a strict construction of the constitution, addressed to loose interpretation of the constitution during their presidencies, while the Federalist, originally supporting a broad view, countered the Democratic- Republicans with a literal definition. The presidents both found their original beliefs on the constitution were beginning to change and they found themselves on middle ground.…

    • 791 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Thomas Jefferson was a limited-government Democrat-Republican. While in office, Jefferson purchased the Louisiana Territory. This purchase, which stretched from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains, empowered the nation government and posed a major philosophical problem for Jefferson. Jefferson believed that all powers of the National Government were enumerated and…

    • 380 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Before Jefferson was elected, he believed the government shouldn’t assume any power unless explicitly provided for in the Constitution. The Louisiana Purchase was the purchase of 828,000 square miles of France’s territory in 1803, and the territory was named Louisiana. The U.S paid the French about 15 million dollars for the territory. There were many questionable remarks made about buying the territory because it was thought to be unconstitutional and he was almost thought of a hypocrite. He did agree that that the Constitution didn’t contain requirements for acquiring the territory, but did anyway because he thought the pros outweighed the cons, though he wasn’t consistent to his original “philosophy” of interpreting the Constitution strictly. Another action considered being “a step in the opposite direction” was the Embargo Act.…

    • 582 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    DBQ 2

    • 478 Words
    • 2 Pages

    During the period of 1801-1817, Democratic-Republicans and Federalists had different views of the Constitution; strict interpretation and then loose interpretation. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison were two Democratic-Republican presidents who viewed the Constitution strictly. However, Jefferson would sometimes adopt federalist practices and loosely interpret the Constitution. The federalists during the Hartford Convention viewed the Constitution super strictly; especially many objectives of the War of 1812 were unconstitutional. Throughout 1801-1817, Jefferson had both strict and loose interpretations of the Constitution, as did federalists.…

    • 478 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Jeffersonian Republican Party, which, of course, supported Thomas Jefferson in the election of 1800, was formed in opposition to the Federalists. The Jeffersonians tended to be more egalitarian than the Federalists.…

    • 990 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    As a small time government official, Jefferson was a believer of strict-constructionism. He voiced his opinions against a strong centralized government and how the Constitution should be strictly followed. However, as he gained more and more power and rose throughout the country’s political ranks, he began to contradict his earlier beliefs. There are two major examples of this. Example number one is the Louisiana Purchase. If Jefferson was still following his beliefs of strict-constructionism, then the Louisiana Purchase would have never happened. However, he began to look at the Constitution in a more loose way, not completely going by the book, which led to the Jefferson Compromise. The Jefferson Compromise was Thomas Jefferson putting aside his constitutional and moral values to purchase that large area of land in a transaction now known as the Louisiana Purchase. The second major example of Jefferson’s conflicting beliefs is his slaves. Thomas Jefferson was always stating that “all men are created equal,” however, Jefferson kept 200 slaves that he never set free.…

    • 332 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Thomas Jefferson Under the executive branch of the new constitution, Thomas Jefferson was the Secretary of State. When Alexander Hamilton wanted to create a new national bank, Jefferson adamantly spoke against it. He felt it would violate states rights by causing a huge competitor for the state banks, then causing a federal monopoly. Jefferson's argument was that since the Constitution did not say Congress could create a bank they should not be given that power. This is the philosophy of strict construction. Thomas Jefferson's beliefs led to the creation of the political party, Democratic Republicans. They believed in an extremely weak central government, no special privileges for special classes, especially manufacturers, and did not believe in letting every white male the ability to vote, only those intelligent enough to make wise decisions.…

    • 2288 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    From the years of 1801-1817 the Democratic-Republicans held back on their strict views of the constitution but did hold true to some of their basic beliefs. This can be seen during the presidency of Thomas Jefferson. Before being elected president, in a letter to one of his future cabinet members, Gideon Granger, Jefferson explained that, "the country was too large" to be "directed by a single government" (A). Jefferson also stated that it was best for the nation if the "states are independent" (A). Jefferson did not believe that the federal government should hold the most power in the nation and feared the birth of a monarchy. This letter demonstrates that Jefferson was true to his beliefs during this time in that he…

    • 1427 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Apush-Revolution of 1800

    • 311 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Politically, Jefferson believed in strict interpretation of the Constitution unlike his predecessors. He bought the Louisiana Purchase which the Constitution did not fully allow him to do. Under Federalist views, the economy of the United States was looking to be increasingly more urban with a shift from agricultural ways. With Thomas Jefferson being elected into office, he hoped that America would maintain a strict agrarian economy with crops being the top export to foreign countries. He wanted Americans to stay a primarily rural-living nation with farming the main aspect of the economy.…

    • 311 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The "revolution of 1800" made many Federalists wary, when Thomas Jefferson finally cut a deal to break the election tie, many Federalists questioned the future welfare of the country. After all, with Thomas Jefferson as president, wouldn't everything they had worked so hard for in the previous decade, be destroyed? Surprise and pleasure rippled through the country when Jefferson stated in his inaugural address "We are all republicans, we are all democrats." This well-known statement would later show its truth when Jefferson allowed his beliefs to become "federalized." Thomas Jefferson proved himself a political compromiser when he repeatedly broke his own belief system.…

    • 468 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jefferson believed in minimal federal control, he felt that individual states should do as they please on their own territory. He also felt that centralized power was unnecessary, he ended up supporting the cause because he realized he could fix the issue from the inside. Thomas Jefferson's differences were bound to start a revolution, i say this because he was going against all the top notches in congress and he was basically contradicting everything they stood for. As stated in The American Political Tradition “ It would be useful in moderating the warmer spirits and promoting a wholesome and practicable reformation only”, Hofstadter tries to portray Thomas Jefferson’s eagerness for reform and how he meant what he said about keeping it…

    • 495 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    During the time period of 1801 to 1817, there were multiple issues in the United States ranging from wars to political boundaries. This time period saw the termination of the Federalist party. The conflicts were between two parties called the Jeffersonian Republicans and the Federalists. The Federalist party was officially started by John Adams. John Adams was also a loose constructionist just like all the other Federalists. Federalists were in favor of a strong central government. On the other side, was Thomas Jefferson who was in office from 1801 to 1809. Jefferson started the Jeffersonian Republican party. The Jeffersonians were strict constructionists who believed in states rights. They said that anything that is not stated in the Constitution, is reserved for the states to decide. However, this was not always the case. The statement that the Jeffersonian Republicans are usually characterized as strict constructionists who were opposed to the broad constructionism of the Federalists is partly accurate during the presidencies of Jefferson and Madison. While any party is in office, that party will almost always be loose constructionists because each party in office wants more power. The Jeffersonians started out as strict constructionists but slowly turned into loose constructionists because they were in office for twenty years.…

    • 1223 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    1998 Dbq Essay

    • 1116 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Following the making of the Constitution, James Madison brought forth the warning of political factions or parties as we know today in one of his many inputs into the Federalist Papers. As the Constitution was offered among the states to be ratified, two groups rose in effect of differing opinions on the document, and these two groups were known as the supporters, Federalists, and the opposition, Antifederalists. After eventual political compromise and the beginning of a new government, these parties did not disappear, yet instead became much stronger. In one corner stood the Federalists who believed in broad constructionism of the Constitution and used it to enlarge the size of the national government and its’ powers. In the other corner stood the Antifederalists who soon became the Democratic-Republicans, and in opposition to the Federalist believed in a strict constructionism of the Constitution and often supporting the power of the state and its’ independence.…

    • 1116 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jefferson's biggest action that stood out as a Federalist viewpoint was the purchase of the Louisiana Territory. When presented with the treaty, Jefferson feared that signing treaty was unconstitutional because it wasn't directly stated in constitution. However, after thinking it over, Jefferson signed the treaty and rationalized for it through implied powers (Moran and Holder 164) and that he had the right under the constitution under the treaty-making powers (Brinkley 202). This went against the Republican view that the federal government only has the rights specifically mentioned in the constitution, and the constitution did not state that the President has the authority to purchase land from other countries. Finally, the Louisiana Purchase used federalist ideas by its vagueness. The treaty did not specifically set up boundaries but simply stated that the purchase was the "same extent" as when France and Spain owned it (Brinkley 202). With this one action, Jefferson went against two of his Republican views; interpreting the constitution as it is written and strong states rights.…

    • 721 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the early days of the United States of America when the country was beginning to grow under the newly ratified Constitution, there were two main political parties in existence, the Federalists and the Jeffersonian Republicans. From the time period of 1801-1817, the two presidents that were elected to rule the U.S. were Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Both Jefferson and Madison were Jeffersonian Republicans who were characterized as strict-constructionists in respect to the federal constitution before they each took the office of the presidency, but when they took office the public found out that Jefferson and Madison's previous characterizations had not been very accurate when, as president, they began to act like the opposite of what they originally believed in.…

    • 1158 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays